heffron



(No Model.) 2 Sheat -Sheet 1..

G. M. HEFFRON.

APPLE SLIGBR.

No; 429,624. 7 Patented June 10, 1890 7 560 Afforney ,Q e. QM

.- UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

A CASSIUS M. HEFFRON, OF ROCHESTER, NE\V YORK.

APPLE-SLICER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 429,624, dated June 10, 1890.

Application filed October 81, 1885.

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, OASSIUS M. HEFFRON, of Rochester, New York, have invented certain Improvements in Apple-Slicers,'of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

My invention relates to certain improvements in apple-slicers, which improvements are fully described and illustrated in the following specification and accompanying drawings and the novel features thereof specified inthe annexed claims.

My improved apple-slicer is represented in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a plan view. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the machine with hopper detached. Fig. 3 is a section on the line a as, Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the machine with the pusher down as seen from the side opposite that shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is an end elevation. Fig. 6 isa section on the line y 'y of Fig. 1.

My improved apple-slicer consists, essen tially, of the channeled frame A, the reciprocating slide B, provided with pusher O and handle D, and the series of knives E E, which are arranged across the open side of the frame at an angle with the line of movement of the slide.

The slide B reciprocates in suitable ways on the frame, as indicated by the full and dotted lines in the drawings, thereby causing the pusher O to force an apple placed in front of it against the edges of knives, by which it is divided into slices, which emerge from between the knives.

As indicated in the drawings, the edges of the frame on each side of the trough or channel in which the pusher reciprocates are formed into a series of steps, to which the ends of the knives E are secured by means of the screws or bolts g. The sides of the knives are beveled, as represented at h, Fig. 1, so as that the knives present sharp edges on the side toward the handle D. The knives are formed of thin strips of sheet-steel, and, as shown in Fig. 2, they are arranged so as to stand at an angle with the line of the reciprocation of the slide, so that the pusher in its movement passes along near their inner sharpened edges, while, as shown in Fig. 1,

Serial No. 181,433- (No man.)

they are also arranged with their edges at an angle with the slide in the other direction, so as to secure a slicing or shearing cut. The frame A is provided with the lugs '5 and j, by which it is fastened to a table or to a projecting ledge on the hopper in case the latter be used.

As will be seen from Fig. 3, the edges of the sides A A of the frame, which constitute the steps for the knives, are formed of flanges 70, which project from the trough or curved part of the frame, by which construction I am enabled to cast the holes for the screws or bolts g, thereby cheapening the cost of manufacture.

I prefer to make the slide B double of two parallel bars Z Z, Fig. 1, provided with longitudinal flanges m m, connected together at each end. The outer end of the slide is provided with the handle D. At the inner end of the slide is attached the pusher C, which consists, preferably, of the arms n n, Fig. 5, attached together at their upper ends by the flange 0, which projects backward parallel to the plane passing through the edges of the series of knives E E. The lower ends of the armsare secured to the end of the slide by the screws orbolts p p, Fig. 5,passing through slotted holes in the arms, thereby permitting the adjustment of the flange 0, so as to compensate for wear on theknives or in the slide. Through the upper part of the pusher the divider-knife qis arranged in a plane parallel with the slide, being secured in place by the screw or screws M". The forward edge of the divider-knife is sharpened, so that it severs the rings from one side of the fruit to the central perforation formed by the coring-machine just before they are forced through between the knives E E, this operation being caused by the divider-knife moving downward while the apple is sustained upon the bottom of the frame.

The frame A is tied together at each end, the cross-bar 3 serving tolimit the movement of the slide at one end and the bar t at the other. Along the bottom of the troughin the frame is arranged the bar a, which is connected at its ends to the cross-bars s and t and serves to support the apple during the slicing operation. This bar is parallel with the inner or flat sides of the knives E E, but is arranged at an angle with the plane occupied by the edges of theknives, so that as the apple is forced along the bar it is subjected to the slicing operation of the knives one after the other. The arms at n of the pusher pass along on each side of the bar a when the slide B reeiprocates.

Suitable guides or ways are formed on the lower part of the frame A for the slide B, which is held in place by the removable plates 1; c.

The hopper F consists of a box of suitable size and shape open at top, and having one of its sides l-I inclined inward at an angle, below which is an opening through which the apples are delivered onto the ledge or platform I, from which they are introduced one by one into the trough A in front of the pusher. The arrangement is such that the operator feeds the apples with the left hand and reciprocates the pusher by the right, thereby securing great speed in the slicing operation. The edge of the bottom of the hopper is provided with a guard I, which prevents the apples from falling off and facilitates the feeding of them into the machine.

By locating the open-sided feeding-aperture of the slicing-machine near the level of the table or support on which the apples are placed they can be fed into the machine more readily by simply pushing them over the edge. As this machine is particularly adapted to fruit that has-been previously cored, this location is advantageous, as such fruit is more or less flattened at the ends by reason of the removal of the core, and hence will of itself roll over and rest upon the flattened end, so that the perforation will be nearly vertical, and when placed in the machine will be cut into a series of rings and separated by the dividing-knife as it passes down through the fruit just before the rings are cut.

I claim- 1. The combination, with a series of flat knives arranged in different planes, having their cutting-edges in aplaneinclined to that of the knives, of a movable pusher having its operating-face substantially at right angles to the plane of the knives and arranged to travel in a plane substantially parallel with that of the knife-edges, substantially as described.

2. The combination, with a series of flat knives arranged in different planes, having their cutting-edges in a plane inclined to that of the knives, of a fruit-support extending parallel with the edges of the knives and a pusher having its operating-face substantially at right angles to the plane of the knives and arranged to travel in a plane substantially parallel with the fruit-support and knife-edges, substantially as described.

The combination, with the frame having the sides formed into a series of steps and perforated flanges 011 the said steps projectin glaterally therefrom,- of the series of knives attached to the steps by the bolts passing through the knives and flanges, substantially as described.

4. The combination, with the frame formed in a single piece having the sides formed into a series of steps and the perforated flanges 011 said steps projecting laterally therefrom, of the series of knives and the bolts securing them to the flanges, substantially as described.

5. The combination, with the frame having the inclined guide and the slotted bottom constituting afruit-support, of a series of knives with their edges arranged at an angle to the plane of the said bottom and the pusher sliding on the guides on the frame and projecting through the slots, substantially as described.

6. The combination, with the frame provided with knives, of the slide and the pusher arranged to travel in a plane parallel to the edges of the knives and adjustably attached to the slide, so that it may be adjusted toward and from the knives, substantially as described.

7. The combination, with the fruit-support and the knives arranged with their edges at an angle to said support, of the pusher arranged to travel in a plane parallel with the edges of the knives and the dividing-knife attached to the pusher, substantially as described.

8. The combination, with the frame having the fruit-support and the supporting-lugs arranged substantially parallel therewith, of the series of knives arranged with their edges at an angle to said support, the pusher arranged to travel in a plane substantially parallel with the knife-edges, and the dividingknife thereon, substantially as described.

9. The combination, with the frame having the fruit-support open on one side and the securing-lugs for attaching it to a table or support, of the slicing-knives arranged substantially parallel with the surface of the table and the pusher co-operating therewith, whereby the device can be attached to its support an d cored fruit moved directly from the surface thereof in position to be cut into rings, substantially as described.

OASSIUS M. TTEFFRON, Witnesses:

ino. l5. SELDEN, H. G. PHILLIPS. 

